USCIS Burdens Consulting Companies by Issuing RFEs

I know many students who submitted H-1B visa applications submitted for the April 2008 lottery are still waiting to hear the lottery results.

Most of them who are following the Happy Schools Blog for H-1B visa updates for 2008 had received RFEs on their H-1B visa applications.

USCIS Issues RFEs for Computer Consulting Firms

…RFEs are issued after an employer files an H-1B visa petition on behalf of a foreign employee.

These lengthy and detailed RFEs, some of them 4 to 5 pages long, are issued when a new employer files either a new H-1B petition or an H-1B visa extension or when the same employer requests continuation of a previously approved employment without a change in employer.

The RFEs have become a source of confusion and frustration for both petitioners and immigration practitioners alike who are unable to fully comprehend why the submitted documentation is not sufficiently persuasive on a particular issue.

It appears that the USCIS has issued these RFEs in an effort to combat what it perceives as a high incidence of H-1B visa fraud, particularly with regard to computer consulting companies (…continue reading).